AMBULANCE bosses have praised a volunteer first aider who saved the life of a veteran runner when he collapsed during a race.

Tony Croft, who is making a good recovery in Queen's Park Hospital, Blackburn, was competing in the over 50s class when he collapsed fewer than 200 yards from the finishing line on New Year's Eve.

British Red Cross member Wendy Entwistle was on hand at the Ribble Valley 10K event. Helped by fellow first aider Ray Hunt, she used an automatic defibrillator to give Mr Croft an electric shock which restarted his heart.

As they continued to give him chest massage and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, she felt his pulse return and he began to breathe again.

Red Cross colleague John Garner called for an ambulance and a doctor who had been running in the race came to help with a nurse who had been watching.

David Hill, chief executive of Lancashire Ambulance Service, said Wendy's quick actions were vital.

He said: "Each minute of delay in restoring the heart to its vital normal pattern of beating following cardiac arrest decreases the chance of survival by 10 per cent.

"Early intervention and use of the defibrillator by Wendy will have greatly increased the chances of survival in this case."

Wendy, a trained nurse who worked at Ewood medical centre until she retired last year, said she did not really realise she had saved someone's life until days later.

She said: "At the time I was just pleased that everything I had done in training had come out right and I had made the right decision but afterwards I was very emotional.

"It was a couple of days before it hit me that we had saved a life. I worked in hospitals before I went to Ewood and of course I've come across similar situations, but in hospitals you always have doctors and equipment so you never had to really make your own decision.

"I'm told he was walking around the ward by Thursday. I'm so pleased that he is getting better." Wendy, of Higher Meadow, Clayton-le-Woods, and her husband Jeffrey started the Ribble Valley Red Cross branch when they lived there six years ago.

They were also behind the idea of fundraising for the £3,500 defibrillator which saved Mr Croft's life. It was paid for by several local people and businesses.

Lancashire Ambulance Service is still fundraising for the Heart of Lancashire appeal to provide 300 defibrillators across Lancashire and train first responder volunteers to use them.

Mr Hill added: "Wendy's action is an excellent example of the benefits which equipment and skilled volunteers can bring in areas such as Lancashire."

Mr Croft, a member of the North Fylde Running Club, was said by a hospital spokesman to be much improved but still weak.